In 1950 Hollywood took a long, hard look at itself.
In a Lonely Place (1950), directed by Nicholas Ray, premiered on May 17 in New York City and starred Humphrey Bogart as dysfunctional, down-on-his-luck screenwriter Dixon Hill. It was on August 10 1950 that an even darker look at Hollywood premiered at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
Sunset Boulevard was directed by Billy Wilder and starred silent film star Gloria Swanson as washed-up silent star Norma Desmond. While some within the industry took offence at the film upon its release (the most famous example being Louis B. Mayer),
Sunset Boulevard (1950) received widespread critical acclaim.
Sunset Boulevard also proved to be a hit at the box office.
Sunset Boulevard (1950) starred William Holden as washed-up screenwriter Joe Gillis, who finds himself wrapped up in the life of former silent movie star Norma Desmond. Norma, who was at one time a major star, spends her days within her mansion in a fantasy world in which she is still wildly popular. Like many silent movie stars, her mansion is on Sunset Boulevard, hence the name of the film.
As might be expected, the origins of
Sunset Boulevard (1950) go back to the history of Sunset Boulevard itself. The history of Sunset Boulevard goes back to the history of Los Angeles itself. It originated in the 1780s as a cattle trail that extended out from the Pueblo de Los Ángeles. Its name, "Sunset Boulevard," first appeared in city street department documents in 1888. One can only assume that it received its name because it heads west, right into the setting sun. Its association with the film industry goes back to 1911, when Nestor Film Company opened its studio on the boulevard. The film industry brought with it money, so that by the 1920s many luxurious houses were built along Sunset Boulevard and around it. The Silent Era during which many luxurious houses were built along Sunset Boulevard would give way to the era of sound film. By the late Forties, some of the most popular silent movie stars were no longer stars, and some of them even lived the lives of recluses. Some, such as Mary Pickford and Pola Negri, lived as recluses. A few, such as Clara Bow and Mae Murray, even suffered from mental disorders.
It was for several years that writer/director Billy Wilder and his writing partner Charles Brackett had been playing with the idea for a movie about a fading silent film star. Originally it was conceived as a light-hearted comedy, but it eventually took a darker direction. Given that the topic of the movie was the film industry itself, the original script was called
A Can of Beans to fend off any interference from their studio, Paramount. For basically the same reason they submitted only a few pages of the script to Paramount at a time.
Eventually, Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett ran into problems developing the plot, so they turned to reporter D. M. Marshman, Jr., with whom they played bridge. The writing on
Sunset Boulevard was truly collaborative, so it was often hard to determine which writer came up with what. Reportedly, it was D. M. Marshman, Jr. who came up with the idea of the fading silent movie star becoming involved with a younger man. It was also reportedly D. M. Marshman, Jr. who came up with the idea of Joe Gillis being a screenwriter.
As mentioned above, by the late Forties such former silent movie stars as Mary Pickford and Pola Negri had become recluses. Others, such as Clara Bow and Mae Murray, suffered from psychiatric illnesses. There can be no doubt that such legends provided inspiration for Norma Desmond, the former silent star who lives in a fantasy world, convinced that she will soon make her comeback. As to Norma Desmond's name, in Close-up on Sunset Boulevard: Billy Wilder, Norma Desmond, and the Dark Hollywood Dream, author Sam Staggs puts forth the theory that Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett may have been thinking of such "...drug addicted, scandal plagued silent stars Norma Talmadge and Mabel Normand, along with murdered silent film director William Desmond Taylor." In an
interview with Anthony Slide on Leonard Maltin's website, D.M. Marshman, Jr. claimed that instead the name was taken from Norma Talmadge and Florence Desmond. Antony Slide pointed out that Florence Desmond had not appeared in silent films, Mr. Marshman said that they thought she had.
Of course, casting would be central to the success of
Sunset Boulevard. The book O
n Sunset Boulevard: The Life and Times of Billy Wilder by Ed Sikov goes into some detail on the casting. Charles Brackett claimed that he and Billy Wilder never considered anyone but Gloria Swanson for the role of Norma Desmond. Billy Wilder remembered that they did consider other actors. When the movie was still conceived as s comedy, Billy Wilder wanted Mae West and Marlon Brando. They also considered Pola Negri, but her Polish accent was much too thick. They visited Mary Pickford, but realised before they even explained the movie to her that she would find the idea of being involved with a younger man insulting. It was friend and fellow director George Cukor who suggested Gloria Swanson.
For the role of Norma Desmond's faithful servant Max, Billy Wilder turned to another fellow director, Erich von Stroheim. In fact, the role was specifically written for him. Gloria Swanson and Erich von Stroheim had worked together before, on the film
Queen Kelly. Mr. von Stroheim had been fired from the film due to costs, production delays, and creative differences with star and producer Gloria Swanson. The film was never completed. When a clip from
Queen Kelly was shown in
Sunset Boulevard as one of Norma Desmond's films, it was the first time any footage of the movie was seen in American movie theatres.
The role of screenwriter Joe Gillis originally went to young actor Montgomery Clift. At that point in his career, he had only appeared in
The Search (1948) and
Red River (1948). At that point, his third film,
The Heiress (1949), was not yet complete. When Billy Wilder offered the role of Gillis to Montgomery Clift, he seemed to be excited about the film. Aside from being an up-and-coming star around whom there was a good deal of excitement, Montgomery Clift certainly had advantages over other actors. He already had a contract with Paramount.. If all had gone according to plan, Mr. Clift would have been paid $5000 a week for twelve weeks.
As it turned out, Montgomery Clift ultimately decided he did not want to do
Sunset Boulevard (1950). His excuse was that he had already played a younger man involved with an older woman in
The Heiress (1949), and did not want to do it again in
Sunset Boulevard (1950). Reportedly, he quit the film only two weeks before shooting was about to start. This brief amount of time forced Billy Wilder to consider other actors already signed to Paramount. Ultimately, the role of Joe Gillis went to William Holden. William Holden had seen success prior to World War II with
Golden Boy (1939) and
Our Town (1940), but he had only seen a moderate amount of success after the war. William Holden proved to be enthusiastic about the script for
Sunset Boulevard and eagerly accepted the role of Joe Gillis.
For the role of production assistant and aspiring screenwriter Betty Schaefer who finds herself entangled with Joe Gillis, Billy Wilder wanted a fresh-faced newcomer for the role He picked Paramount contract player Nancy Olson. At the time she was cast as Betty in
Sunset Boulevard, she had only made one film--
Canadian Pacific (1949). According to Betty Olson in a recent
interview with
People, "I remember being very impressed that Billy chose me to play Betty Schaefer, and after a certain point, I realised that he wanted me not to be a character; he wanted me to be myself." Billy Wilder not only wanted Nancy Olson to be herself as Betty, but he even wanted her to wear her own clothes.
Other well-known actors filled the smaller roles in
Sunset Boulevard (1950). Character actor Fred Clark played the film producer Shedrake (a name Billy Wilder would use again in
The Apartment in 1960 and
Kiss Me Stupid in 1964). Character actor Lloyd Gough, who later played Mike Axford on the TV series
The Green Hornet, played Joe Gillis's agent Morino. Jack Webb, best known as Sgt. Joe Friday on the radio show and TV show
Dragnet, played Joe's friend Artie Green.
Given that
Sunset Boulevard (1950) is set in Hollywood and is centred on a fading silent movie star, it should come as no surprise that a who's who of Hollywood notables appear in the film. This is particularly true of the famous scene in which Norma plays bridge with friends. While Norma's friends in the scene have traditionally been termed "waxworks," their careers were actually healthier than Norma's career at the time, even if they were no longer the huge stars they once were. Buster Keaton's career was undergoing a revival even as
Sunset Boulevard (1950) was released. In 1949 James Agee had written an article on silent comedians for
Life magazine. The article revived interest in Buster Keaton and other silent comedians, so that his films were being screened again and Mr. Keaton began appearing on television and in movies. H. B. Warner had played Jesus Christ in the 1927 version of
The King of Kings. Although a character actor rather than a star, his career was still strong in the Forties, appearing in the movies
Topper Returns (1941),
High Wall (1947), and, most notably
It's a Wonderful Life (1946). Like H. B. Warner, Anna Q. Nilsson was no longer a big name, but still had a successful career. In the Forties alone she appeared in such films as
The Farmer's Daughter (1947) and
Adam's Rib (1949). Other famous names appearing in the movie were gossip columnist Hedda Hopper as herself, composer Jay Livingston as a pianist at a party, and, perhaps most famous of them all, director Cecil B. DeMille as himself.
The cinematographer on
Sunset Boulevard (1950) was John F. Seitz, with whom Billy Wilder had worked before. John F. Seitz had shot
Five Graves to Cairo (1943),
Double Indemnity (1944), and
The Lost Weekend (1945). The costume designer on
Sunset Boulevard (1950) was none other than the legendary Edith Head, who had worked with Billy Wilder multiple times and would work with him again multiple times.
In the movie, Norma Desmond lives at 10086 Sunset Boulevard. In actuality, the house that serves as the exterior of Norma's home in
Sunset Boulevard (1950) was at 641 S. Irving Boulevard and stood at the corner of Irving and Wilshire Boulevard. It had been built between 1922 and 1923 for businessman William O. Jenkins. In 1936 it was sold to oil magnate J. Paul Getty. One of Mr. Gerry's former wives was still living in the mansion at the time that
Sunset Boulevard was filmed. Before she would let Paramount rent the property, they had to agree to build her a new swimming pool. The mansion would later appear in the Warner Bros. movie
Rebel Without a Cause. Unfortunately, the property would be sold in 1957 and it would be torn down to make way for the office building known as the Tidewater Oil Building. It was art director Hans Dreier who was responsible for the over-the-top opulence of Norma Desmond's mansion. His career went back to the Silent Era in Germany, and he had worked on such films as
A Farewell to Arms (1932),
The Lady Eve (1941), and
Holiday Inn (1942). He had worked with Billy Wilder before, on the films
Five Graves to Cairo (1943),
Double Indemnity (1944),
The Lost Weekend (1945),
The Emperor Waltz (1948), and
A Foreign Affair (1948).
The William O. Jenkins house wasn't the only famous Los Angeles landmark to appear in
Sunset Boulevard (1950). Sadly, some of the other landmarks, like the William O. Jenkins house, no longer exist. The legendary Schwab's Pharmacy, which was at 8024 Sunset Boulevard, appears in the film. It closed in 1983 and was demolished in 1988 to make way for a shopping centre. Bullocks Wilshire also appears in the shopping sequence. It was a men's clothing store that was open for more than sixty years. The building still stands and is being used by the Southwestern Law School. Across the street in the shopping scene can be seen Perino's Restaurant, which was at 3927 Wiltshire. It closed in 1986 and was demolished in 2005. Other famous locations appearing in
Sunset Boulevard (1950) were the Bel-Air Country Club, Griffith Park, and the corner of Hollywood & Vine. The Alto Nito Apartments where Joe Gillis lived still stand and one can still rent an apartment there.
Of course, since the film industry was at the heart of
Sunset Boulevard (1950), the Paramount lot played a big role in the film. Indeed, the scenes of Joe Gillis and Betty Shaefer on the studio backlot actually were filmed on the Paramount backlot. The writer's offices in the movie were the Dreier Building on the Paramount lot, which had been both designed and named for art director Hans Dreier years before the movie was made. As might be expected, Paramount's famed Bronson Gate, the main entrance to the studio for years, also appears in the film.
Principal filming on
Sunset Boulevard (1950) took place from April 11 to June 18 1949. While the beginning of
Sunset Boulevard (1950) is one of the most famous beginnings of a movie of all time, originally it had a completely different beginning. Originally
Sunset Boulevard (1950) began with Joe Gillis's corpse being taken to the morgue, where it speaks to other corpses. Charles Brackett hated the original opening, and thought of it as "morbid and disgusting." As it turned out, audiences did not care for the original opening of
Sunset Boulevard (1950) either. The first preview screening of
Sunset Boulevard (1950) was held in Evanston, Illinois, where the audience reacted to the film's opening sequence with laughter. A second preview screening in Poughkeepsie, New York had the same result. A third preview screening in Great Neck, Long Island also went poorly.
With three preview screenings having gone badly, Paramount postponed the release of
Sunset Boulevard (1950) and Billy Wilder jettisoned the original opening of the film for the one for which it would become famous. More preview screenings of the film would then be held, this time in the Los Angeles area. Unlike the initial previews, these screenings received overall positive reactions. When another screening was held in the Midwest, this time in Detroit, the audience's reactions were more favourable.
It was on August 10 1950 that
Sunset Boulevard (1950) premiered at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. It received an overly positive notice from
New York Times critic Thomas M. Pryor, who ended his review with, "Make no mistake about it.
Sunset Boulevard is a motion picture classic." Later, on August 27 1950, Bosley Crowther, the
New York Times' chief critic who could at times be hard to please, also gave
Sunset Boulevard (1950) appears to have liked
Sunset Boulevard, ending his review with, "As a study of greed and frustration, of change and decay, this film is tops." The critics at
The New York Times weren't alone in their praise for the film. The film also received positive reviews from
The New York Herald-Tribune and
The New York Journal-American.
Sunset Boulevard (1950) proved to be a hit with audiences at Radio City Music Hall. Bosley Crowther in his review noted "...the swarms of eager patrons which it is now drawing to the Music Hall."
Sunset Boulevard (1950) opened elsewhere in the United States later that month. In Los Angeles, it opened at the Paramount's downtown and Hollywood theatres on August 24 1950. While this was not the case with either Paramount or RKO theatres, some theatres elected to show
Sunset Boulevard (1950) together with another movie critical of Hollywood,
In a Lonely Place (1950), as a double feature. An example of this was the Lux Theatre in Oakland, California.
Sunset Boulevard (1950) received largely positive reviews beyond New York City. In the
St. Louis Globe-Democrat, Herbert L Monk wrote of the film, "Bizarre is the word for much of what goes on in
Sunset Boulevard. But it's all quite fascinating."
The Hollywood Reporter praised the film, noting, "All their previous and distinguished work seems now to be but dress rehearsals for this triumph of motion picture craftsmanship." Both
Good Housekeeping and
Look praised Gloria Swanson's performance. There were a few detractors.
The New Yorker gave the film a bad review, referring to it as "pretentious." One person who detested the film was MGM head Louis B. Mayer, who told Billy Wilder, "You have disgraced the industry that made and fed you! You should be tarred and feathered and run out of Hollywood!"According to Nancy Olson, Billy Wilder's response to Mr. Mayer was simply, "Go f*** yourself." Darryl Zanuck of 20th Century Fox apparently did not think highly of
Sunset Boulevard (1950) either. He claimed, "
Sunset Boulevard was a masterpiece until it was released throughout the country and failed to do business. It's not so big a masterpiece today."
As it turns out, Darryl Zanuck was wrong on more than one count. The budget for
Sunset Boulevard (1950) came out to $1,572,000. It made $2,350,000 in the United States alone. It was then not only a hit with critics, but a hit with audiences as well. Arguably,
Sunset Boulevard (1950) was indeed a masterpiece that did well across the country. Not only was
Sunset Boulevard (1950) a hit with critics and audiences, but it turned out that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences loved the film as well. It was nominated for eleven Academy Awards and was the only the fifth movie to receive nominations in every single acting category. Unfortunately, it would also be the second film to be nominated in every single acting category not to win any of them (
My Man Godfrey was the first). Ultimately,
Sunset Boulevard (1950) only won two Oscars out of its eleven nominations: Best Story and Screenplay and Best Art Direction – Black-and-White. As much of a classic as
Sunset Boulevard (1950) has come to be regarded, it was released in a year full of classics, including
All About Eve (1950),
Born Yesterday (1950),
Cyrano de Bergerac (1950),
Harvey (1950), and
The Third Man (1950), among others.
After having worked together on thirteen films,
Sunset Boulevard (1950) would be the last movie on which Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett collaborated. While they no longer worked together they would remain friends. Neither Billy Wilder nor Charles Brackett's careers suffered from the split. Billy Wilder would go on to make such classics as
Sabrina (1954),
Some Like It Hot (1959),
The Apartment (1960), and yet others. Charles Brackett wrote the screenplays for such films as
Niagara (1953),
Titanic (1953), and
The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing (1955).
Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett would face accusations that they had plagiarised the script for
Sunset Boulevard (1950). A former accountant for Paramount, Stephanie Joan Carlson, claimed that between 1943 and 1947 she had written a series of stories, some fictional and some based on fact, about life at the studio. She further claimed that she had submitted these stories to Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett and that
Sunset Boulevard (1950) resembled a story called "Past Performance" in particular. She sued Messrs. Wilder and Brackett as well as Paramount for $100,000 in general damages, $250,000 in exemplary damages, and $750,000 based on the movie's box office profits. On top of all this was thrown in an extra $350,000. After two and a half years, Stephanie Joan Carlson's lawsuit was dismissed. Another plagiarism lawsuit was filed by playwright Edna Buckler against Paramount Pictures in 1954. It was thrown out the following year.
Sunset Boulevard (1950) would have such a lasting impact that it has been referenced and parodied in movies and television shows ever since its release. Perhaps the most famous parody of all time was a sketch on the 14th episode of the fifth season of
The Carol Burnett Show titled "Sunnyset Boulevard." Carol Burnett played an even more demented Nora Desmond, while Harvey Korman played her butler Max. It proved so popular that it led to a series of recurring sketches on the show.
Sunset Boulevard (1950) has also been spoofed on such shows as
3rd Rock from the Sun,
Tiny Toon Adventures,
Archer, and others
. Sunset Boulevard (1950) has served as a source of inspiration for yet other films and TV shows, including
Sweet Bird of Youth (1962)
, The Oscar (1966),
Valley of the Dolls (1957),
The Legend of Lylah Clare (1968),
Soapdish (1991),
Gods and Monsters (1998),
Mulholland Drive (2001), and yet others. The classic episode of
The Twilight Zone "The Sixteen-Millimeter Shrine" owes a good deal to
Sunset Boulevard (1950). In the episode, Ida Lupino played fading movie star Barbara Jean Trenton, who like Norma Desmond lives in the past. Both the television shows
Twin Peaks and
Desperate Housewives referenced
Sunset Boulevard (1950) on a regular basis.
Of course, as strange as it may seem, there is also a stage musical based on the film. Attempts to adapt
Sunset Boulevard (1950) as a musical actually began when the film was only a few years old. Cabaret singer and pianist Dickson Hughes and actor Richard Wyler approached Gloria Swanson about appearing in a musical revue they had written,
About Time. This led to the three of them working on an adaptation of
Sunset Boulevard (1950) initially titled
Starring Norma Desmond and then
The Boulevard! from 1952 to 1956. Any hopes for the musical were dashed when Paramount withdrew their permission in the late Fifties. Material from the musical would later be used in 1994 by Dickson Hughes in his musical
Swanson on Sunset, which was based on his experience working with the star.
It was also in the early 1950s that Stephen Sondheim considered a musical adaptation of
Sunset Boulevard (1950), even writing the first scene with librettist Burt Shevelove. He aborted his plans after running into Billy Wilder at a party, who told him it would work much better as an opera. Hal Prince would later approach Stephen Sondheim about a musical adaptation of
Sunset Boulevard. He declined Hal Prince's proposal, giving this earlier conversation with Billy Wilder as the reason. Later Hal Prince approached John Kander and Fred Ebb. Discussions with Hal Prince fell apart.
It would be Andrew Lloyd Weber who would finally mount a successful musical adaptation of
Sunset Boulevard (1950). It had book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton, and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. It opened on July 12 1993 on the West End of London, with Patti LuPone as Norma Desmond. It has since been produced in Los Angeles, on Broadway, and in various touring productions. It has also seen revivals on the West End and Broadway since then.
Sunset Boulevard (1950) revitalised William Holden's career as he began getting better parts. He would go on to appear in such films as
Executive Suite (1955),
The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957),
The Wild Bunch (1969), and
Network (1976). Among his successes were further collaborations with Billy Wilder:
Stalag 17 (1953), for which he won the Oscar for Best Actor;
Sabrina (1954), and
Fedora (1978).
Sunset Boulevard (1950) would not revive Gloria Swanson's film career, it would guarantee her lasting fame. While she made only three movies after
Sunset Boulevard (1950), she made several guest appearances on television shows, including
Dr. Kildare,
Burke's Law,
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, and
The Beverly Hillbilies, among other. From 1954 to 1955 she hosted
Crown Theatre with Gloria Swanson. She guest starred on
The Carol Burnett Show in its seventh season, where she got to play Charlie Chaplin in a sketch. Nancy Olson would not become a movie star due to
Sunset Boulevard (1950), but she would have a good career, appearing in such films as
Pollyanna (1960),
The Absent-Minded Professor (1961), and
Airport 1975 (1974). She was a regular on the shows
Kingston Confidential and
Paper Dolls.
Sunset Boulevard (1950) was one of the last films to be shot on cellulose nitrate. While cellulose nitrate produced vivid black-and-white images, it was also very flammable and so it was abandoned and replaced by cellulose acetate, Unfortunately, cellulose nitrate also tends to decompose. For this reason most of the prints of
Sunset Boulevard (1950) were in very poor condition. It was then that Paramount launched an effort to restore the film digitally. Prior to the restoration, it had been released on Betamax, Laserdisc in 1984, and VHS in 1984. The newly restored version would be released on DVD in 2002. It would be restored digitally again in 2012 for its release on Blu-Ray.
Such is the stature of
Sunset Boulevard (1950) that it was among the first movies included in the National Film Registry in 1989, which includes films deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the United States. Library of Congress. In 1998, it was ranked no. 12 by the American Film Institute in their list AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies, which included the greatest American films of all time. In
Sight and Sound's 2022 list of the Greatest Films of All Time it was ranked at no. 78.
Sunset Boulevard (1950) regularly ranks on lists of the greatest movies of all time, and it remains one of the most quoted movies of all time as well (particularly Norma's line, "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up").
Sunset Boulevard (1950) remains one of the best loved films of all time and is still regarded as one of the greatest movies of all time. Chances are good that even the average person will know the film 75 years from now.
